UAE M-SAM delivery confirmed

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum is shown an M-SAM launcher during a visit to Al-Dhafra Air Base. (Government of Dubai Media Office)

A launcher from the South Korean-made Mid-range Surface-to-Air Missile (M-SAM) system was shown for the first time in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) when Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the Dubai crown prince who serves as defence minister, visited Al-Dhafra Air Base.

Videos released by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and WAM news agency on 11 May showed Sheikh Hamdan inspecting various aircraft and air-defence systems at the base, including an M-SAM launcher on the same Kia KM1500 8×8 vehicle used by its South Korean counterpart, which is called the Cheongung. The media coverage did not show the associated radars for the M-SAM and US-made Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) and Patriot launchers that were also displayed.

The MoD announced in November 2021 that it intended to acquire the M-SAM for USD3.5 billion, making it the first export customer for the system. South Korean sources subsequently confirmed the order was for the improved Block II version of the system, which is called the Cheongung in South Korea.

South Korea's Ministry of National Defense (MND) appeared to reveal in February 2023 that the first M-SAM II had been delivered to the UAE when it announced that the country's defence minister had visited a unit operating the system during a trip to Abu Dhabi. The MND said the system had completed its first live-fire test, confirming its performance in a desert environment.

An official from Hanwha Systems, which makes the M-SAM's radar, told Janes